Some Important Facts About Percocet

Percocet is formulated with a mixture of oxycodone and acetaminophen. Oxycodone is one kind of opioid drug which works as pain reliever. An opioid is often called a narcotic. On the other hand Acetaminophen is known as a less powerful pain reliever but it enhances the effects of Oxycodone. Doctors usually prescribe Percocet to relieve moderate to extreme pain. It may also be recommended for other health problems.

Some important facts about Percocet

You should inform your doctor if you have any past history of alcoholic liver disease or if you drink more than three alcoholic beverages every day. In these cases you might not be able to have medicine which contains acetaminophen. It is important that you know that an overdose of acetaminophen might damage your liver or even cause death.

Oxycodone can lead to drug dependency so you should take Percocet only if you are prescribed for. Percocet can impair your reactions and thinking. So you should avoid driving or operating any machine until you are well aware of how Percocet can affect you. You need to inform your doctor immediately, if the drug seems to stop working.

How should a patient take Percocet?

Though Percocet is taken when needed but you should still take Percocet exactly the same way as recommended by your physician or doctor. You should not have in smaller or larger amounts or for shorter or longer than prescribed. You also need to follow the instructions on your prescription label. You need to keep it in your mind that your doctor or physician may sometimes change your dose of the pill to ensure that you get the best results.

You should drink six to eight full glasses of water daily to help avoid constipation when you are having Percocet. You should not chew, crush, break, or open an extended-release pill bottle. You must swallow it whole because breaking the pill may lead to you a situation when you have too much of the pill into your system released at one time.

Taking Percocet during pregnancy

If you are pregnant or decided to conceive you need to tell your doctor or physician before having this medicine. You will need to talk about the benefits and risks of taking Percocet while you are pregnant. Percocet can cause some problems to an unborn child. But it could cause low birth weight, premature birth, or withdrawal symptoms in a baby if the mother takes Percocet during her pregnancy. Again, it may pass into human milk. So anyone breast-feeding a child should not take Percocet.

What happens if a patient misses a dose?

In many occasions patients forget their dosing schedules. If a patient is taking Percocet regularly, he should have the missed dose whenever he can remember. When it is the time to have the next dose he should skip that and more to his regular dose afterwards. However, never take a double dose of this drug.

Facts about the Percocet overdose

You need to seek emergency medical assistance if you feel you have taken Percocet more than you have been prescribed. The first signs of an overdose are vomiting, nausea, sweating, reduced appetite, weakness, stomach pain and confusion. Later other symptoms may include dark urine, pain in the stomach, and change of the skin or the whites of the eyes.

Overdose symptoms can also include extreme cold and clammy skin, drowsiness, fainting, pinpoint pupils, muscle weakness, weak pulse, coma, slow heart rate, blue lips, shallow breathing, or severe breathing problems.

What are the possible side effects of Percocet?

You should call your doctor or physician as soon as possible and seek medical assistance right away if you experience slow heartbeat, shallow breathing; feeling fainting, light-headed; unusual thoughts or abnormal behavior, confusion; seizure; trouble with urination; or stomach pain, nausea, itching, reduced appetite, clay-colored stools, dark urine or jaundice.

Some other less severe side effects are more common. You can continue taking Percocet and but you should also tell your doctor or physician if you are feeling dizzy or drowsy; vomiting, mild nausea, stomach upset, constipation; dry mouth; or blurred vision.

Like all other medicines proper precautions and safety measures should be taken before taking Percocet. Again this medicine must only be taken in a proper way after consulting with a doctor.